Marc Savoy was born and raised in the small Cajun prairie town of Eunice, Louisiana. Drawing inspiration from 'bals de maison' (house dances) in his father's outdoor kitchen, Savoy obtained his first accordion and began playing it at the age of 12. Playing the instrument led to repairing it and after disassembling enough accordions he began to build them. Playing the accordion has always been a natural part of his life from the dancehall to the home. The musicians with whom he has played Cajun music read like a who’s who of the finest in Cajun music, from the Balfa Brothers, DL Menard, Doc Guidry to early fiddle masters Dennis McGee and Wade Fruge. Later he played the Texas “ Cajun Triangle“ dancehalls and recorded some 45 rpms on the legendary producer Huey Meaux’sCrazy Cajun label.

In 1965 Marc opened the Savoy Music Center in Eunice, which has become a gathering place for local musicians and interested travelers from all over the world. At the store he builds six accordions a month, sending them out to all corners of the globe. Saturday mornings Savoy hosts a jam session at his store.
Marc appeared as a musician in Walter Hill’s film Southern Comfort under the musical direction of Ry Cooder. In 1982 he was awarded the prestigious National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. Marc recently appeared in the PBS documentary, American Roots Series
A striking feature of Marc’s presence is his down-hominess and devotion to preserving Cajun culture. Whether he is playing at his weekly jam session, on a porch, at a dance or festival, it is all the same. He presents his music in its natural state, no glitz, no Cool Whip, no glamour.

Today Savoy travels and plays music either with the Savoy Family Band (which features his wife Ann and their two sons, Joel and Wilson) or with the Savoy Doucet Cajun Band (featuring famed Cajun fiddler Michael Doucet and Ann). He has recorded nine CDs on the Arhoolie label and has traveled throughout the US, Europe, and Canada. Savoy loves being in Louisiana where he is known for being an outspoken cultural preservationist, fighting to keep the music pure and unadulterated.

“..Marc Savoy is..the finest Cajun accordion player of the era. He has impeccable taste, is creative without ever being affected, and plays as hot as anyone yet his playing always sounds very relaxed, as if he’s having the time of his life...”-Old Time Herald“Marc, a master of the button accordion, astutely mixed emphatic chords with rippling arpeggios, and Ann, the rhythm guitar player, used her gorgeous voice to add a rare lyricism to what is primarily a social dance music.”-Washington Post

Ann Allen Savoy is a musician, photographer, record producer, and writer. Her destiny was sealed when she began to listen to rare collections of Cajun 78’s. She met her future husband, acclaimed accordion builder/musician Marc Savoy, and after their marriage she began documenting the Cajun culture, taking photographs, interviewing important musicians, and transcribing the Cajun French songs. Her documentation ultimately became a book, Cajun Music: A Reflection of a People Volume 1, which won the prestigious Botkin book award from the American Folklore Society. An avid photographer since high school, her photos have been exhibited at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and at the Festival of American Music in Eugene, Oregon.

Ann, a musician since the age of ten, began touring extensively with her husband and Michael Doucet as the Savoy Doucet Cajun Band , appearing in venues such as the Berlin Jazz Festival, Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, and throughout Europe, Canada, and the United States. She and her friend Jane Vidrine also formed the Grammy nominatedMagnolia Sisters, and all women band, to explore the womanly side of Cajun music. Currently she is proud to play in the Savoy Family Cajun Band, a band with her husband and two sons, Joel and Wilson. She has recorded fifteen CDs on the Arhoolie, Rounder,Vanguard, and Memphis International labels.

Approached by Vanguard executive Steve Buckingham, Ann produced two tributes to Cajun and Creole music, the concept of these CDs being pop stars performing with traditional musicians. The first of these, Evangeline Made, was nominated for a Grammy. Shortly thereafter she was approached by T Bone Burnett to appear in the film “The Divine secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood” and in the film appears as a musician in the 1940’s. Her songs from this film appear on the Sony soundtrack of the movie.

Her good friend, Linda Ronstadt, asked her to record a record of duets with her, and this CD, “Adieu False Heart”, was also nominated for a Grammy.

Today Ann lives in Eunice, Louisiana and continues to travel with her bands, recording, writing books, and appearing in films.

“Savoy has a plaintive, unvarnished delivery that conjures up images of clothing hung to dry in a backwoods backyard...she’s the last of a dying breed of performers”-

Entertainment Weekly

“Ann Savoy is a keeper of the flame-the kind of girl Duke Ellington had in mind when he wrote “Sophisticated Lady”. She doesn’t imitate the past, she animates it-she makes dead men walk along a crooked line from the paddocks of Virginia to the swamps of Louisiana. She’s a blues singer. In French.”

T Bone Burnett

Joel Savoy, son of Cajun music royalty Marc and Ann, is one of the most requested fiddlers in SW Louisiana today. Growing up in Eunice, Louisiana, literally at the feet of Cajun heros like Dennis McGee, Dewey Balfa, Michael Doucet, and Wade Frugé (to name a few) Joel developed a strong sense of what makes Cajun Cajun and as a result, he has developed a fiddle style that is at once authentic and on the cutting edge. In performance he represents his culture with an authority that few people his age can and his playing leaves no doubt that Cajun music is still very much alive. Well versed in music and a quick learner, he can be found playing with just about every band in SWLA a some time or other, though most often he’s seen with his brother Wilson and their parents in the Savoy Family Band. In 2006 Joel founded Valcour Records which has since developed into what many believe to be the number one music source for what’s happening with the youth of Acadiana today. He’s worked and played with Linda Ronstadt,T-Bone Burnett, Steve Buckingham, Allison Krauss, Linda Ronstadt, Steve Miller, Tim O’Brien, Darol Angor and many more. Joel also builds accordions with his father, makes electric guitars and hi-end tube amps and studio gear, and is an excellent recording engineer. He lives on a small farm outside of Eunice with a dog and a rabbit and he loves a good cocktail on most any evening.

“Joel Savoy is one of the most exciting fiddlers I know. He can switch from sweet, sultry soulfulness to jaw-dropping complexity in a heartbeat. He never fails to leave his audiences moved, dazzled, and, more often than not, completely smitten”-Dirk Powell

“Joel Savoy is one of the finest fiddlers of his generation. Whether it's Cajun music, swing, or 'what have you' that he's playing, you can rest assured that his fiddling's gonna sound great.”-Paul Anastasio

"Joel Savoy is one of my favorite musicians on just about any instrument, but on guitar and Cajun Fiddle he is truly outstanding."-Linda Ronstadt

"Everything Joel Savoy touches turns to music."-T-Bone Burnett

Wilson Savoy, the youngest son of Marc Savoy and Ann Savoy, has made music since before he could walk. As though learning by osmosis in the womb, Wilson could whistle and hum complicated Cajun melodies note for note before he could even speak.He also grew up with Cajun greats like Dennis McGee, Dewey Balfa, Michael Doucet, and Wade Frugé He began playing boogie-woogie and blues piano, inspired by Louisiana-native, Jerry Lee Lewis, at the age of 10, and took up the accordion after graduating from high school. His major influences are his father, Amede Ardoin, and Iry Lejeune. He and his brother, Joel, appear as musicians in a scene with Sean Penn in the upcoming Sony picture, “All The King’s Men”. Besides being a musician on fiddle, accordion, piano, bass, and guitar, he is an avid filmmaker, and has produced films of many of the finest bands in SW Louisiana.(www.almenafilms.com ) When he isn’t making and producing music videos and short biographies he is traveling with his three times Grammy nominated dynamic young band, the Pine Leaf Boys, who have recorded with Arhoolie Records, Lion’s Gate, and Valcour Records. Check him out on episode eleven of the HBO show, Treme.
Wilson Savoy is a powerhouse on the keyboard, whether it’s piano or accordion.